The world’s top ABBA tribute joins Pacific Symphony to perform some of the most iconic songs ever written: “Dancing Queen,” “Mamma Mia,” “Waterloo,” “S.O.S.,” “Gimme, Gimme, Gimme” and so many more will have you dancing in the aisles and singing along. With hundreds of performances over the past two decades, The Music of ABBA has audiences all in agreement: This is the closest to ABBA you’ll ever get!
Richard Kaufman: Conductor, Whitney Claire Kaufman: Vocalist, ARRIVAL from Sweden, Pacific Symphony
On his latest album—the double-Grammy-nominated Absence—trumpeter Terence Blanchard pays tribute to one of jazz's greatest composers in Wayne Shorter. Teaming up with both his electric ensemble the E-Collective and Turtle Island Quartet, Blanchard reimagines songs from across Shorter's adventurous catalog and shares songs inspired by the saxophonist, resulting in what The New Yorker called “a lush and dramatic soundscape that calls to mind Blanchard's career as a successful film composer.”
Drawing multi-generational audiences and creating “a bolero revival in LA” (Al Borde), Boleros De Noche’s annual celebration of bolero music from across Latin America returns to The Ford. This night will feature Los Angeles native La Marisoul. Marisoul won fans and a Grammy award as the lead singer of La Santa Cecilia. In her latest bolero project, Marisoul takes inspiration from Olga Guillot, Toña La Negra, and Ella Fitzgerald, in a stunning tribute to bolero music and American jazz, reimagining classic songs accompanied by an 18-piece big band orchestra.
With his albums The Epic and Heaven and Earth, LA saxophone virtuoso Kamasi Washington brought the lineage of hard bop and spiritual jazz into the 21st century, introducing the genres' incredible histories to brand-new audiences while building a legacy of his own. A recipient of Grammy and Emmy nominations and spots at the Sundance Film Festival and Whitney Biennial, as well as the winner of the inaugural American Music Prize, he and his band chase the spirit of jazz at The Ford.
NowRising highlights the next generation of classical and symphonic musicians who are shaping and reinventing the future of their craft. Junction Trio combines the talents of violinist Stefan Jackiw, cellist Jay Campbell, and pianist/composer Conrad Tao, each of whom have been celebrated as soloists performing around the world. “Watching the trio perform, one really couldn’t tell who was happier to be there—the rapt audience or the musicians... These three are onto something special” (The Boston Globe).
Bassist Les Claypool rarely approaches anything in a straightforward way, so it’s no surprise that his take on jazz would be especially unusual. Enlisting the help of funk virtuoso drummer Stanton Moore of Galactic, as well as longtime collaborators Mike Dillon and Skerik, Claypool brings his Bastard Jazz project to The Ford for a night of wild and wigged-out improvisations, reworked Primus songs, and more.
For years, Monsieur Periné have played at the intersection of pop, jazz, and rock, with the highly charismatic singer Catalina Garcia leading the way for the Colombian group. It's a unique take that's won them Latin Grammys and Grammy nominations—and, unexpectedly, viral fame on TikTok, where their song “Nuestra Cancion” has been viewed more than 2 billion times. They bring the party to The Ford, with new songs like “Volverte A Ver” and “Nada” showing where the group is headed next.
Devonté Hynes defies categorization. Best known for his recordings under the name Blood Orange, Hynes has been a champion of the vulnerable or dispossessed as a songwriter while channeling his classical and R&B influences into something new. As a composer, he recently collaborated with Third Coast Percussion on the classical GRAMMY-nominated album FIELDS, in addition to scoring a number of projects for film and TV, including Luca Guadagnino’s We Are Who We Are for HBO, the film Queen & Slim, and more. The range of his musical appetites led The New York Times Magazine to describe him as a “polymath musician [who is] a whole new model of artist, daubing his signature sensibility over music, film, dance, and everything else he touches.” In this special concert, Hynes joins forces with the Los Angeles Philharmonic conducted by Paolo Bortolameolli in new arrangements of his piano concerto, Happenings, and his cello concerto, Origin. Hynes also draws on his film scores in both solo and duo piano performances, joined by author and celebrated contemporary classical pianist Adam Tendler.
Green Umbrella celebrates emerging and legendary voices in contemporary classical music, curated by the LA Phil’s Creative Chair John Adams. Green Umbrella at The Ford makes use of the unique physical setting of the outdoor amphitheater, showcasing music that creates a world of sound through both electronic and traditional acoustic instruments by Gérard Grisey, Vivian Fung, Juan Felipe Waller, Gabriella Smith, and Kaija Saariaho.
Writing with extraordinary insight balanced by empathy and care, Ani DiFranco is an icon for those who find that society's boundaries have been drawn to exclude them. Her latest album, 2021's Revolutionary Love, is an understated yet captivating alchemy of folk and soul and lushly textured jazz-pop that tackles the personal and the political that holds the past to account and looks forward to the future.
Pianist and composer Tigran Hamasyan fuses powerful jazz improv with the rich folkloric music of his native Armenia, but his scope is even broader than that. Taking inspiration from metal, minimalism, electronic music, and sacred music, he’s forged a uniquely flexible sound: He can roar and whisper with equal potency, often on the same track. At The Ford, he debuts songs from his latest album, The Call Within, which Downbeat says “[feels] like a map of an inner journey that only he could lead.
Five years after his Ford debut, Rufus Wainwright returns performing solo and with pianist Jacob Mann and guitarist Brian Green. In addition to playing covers and songs from across his vast catalog—including his celebrated new album Unfollow the Rules—he'll be performing music by Judy Garland, celebrating the 100th birthday of this Hollywood icon, whose brilliance he captured at the Hollywood Bowl in 2007 and on record in 2022 with Rufus Does Judy at Capitol Studios.
Two historic amphitheaters on either side of the 101 freeway put on a free celebration of music and community. Hosted by KCRW DJ Novena Carmel, 101 Festival at The Ford features performances by the multifaceted singer-songwriter Mereba, rising-star singer maye, producer and beatboxer Taylor McFerrin, Jimetta Rose and her choir The Voices of Creation, Tonina, Weapons of Mass Creation, Gingee, and Get Lit. The day opens with a performance and blessing by Eyooxaarin featuring performers from the Chumash and Tongva communities. Register for your chance to get free tickets on May 10.